


Theme of Love

by larosesombre



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Established Relationship, Inspired by Scooby Doo, Kidnapping, M/M, Rescue, Scooby Doo Style Mysteries & Hijinks, Trapped
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2020-11-14
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:33:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27559888
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/larosesombre/pseuds/larosesombre
Summary: A Garashir rewrite of a scene from Scooby Doo, of all things."I've arranged this trap around the theme of love. There are many people who do not believe it is possible for a Human and a Cardassian to be in love. Now's your chance to prove them wrong. You're in a pit that will shortly begin to fill with water. One of your seats is free to float, while the other is chained to the floor. If you're clever enough, one of you can escape this trap. Or, you can stay faithfully with the man you love. It's your choice."
Relationships: Julian Bashir/Elim Garak
Comments: 6
Kudos: 32





	1. Garak as Daphne

**Author's Note:**

> This fic requires some explanation... So, Youtube is a strange and mysterious place and this clip from Scooby Doo popped up in my recommended:[Theme of Love](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmUrQbmTdXM)
> 
> I watched it, and suddenly had the bright idea to rewrite it as a Garashir. However, I had one major issue: I had no idea who I wanted to be the rescuer (Fred), and who the rescuee (Daphne). So I wrote it both ways and am posting both together as separate chapters. So, if you want to read about Garak getting rescued, continue here. If you want Julian to get rescued, try chapter two. Or read both, they're both fun. 
> 
> My other problem is that I just wanted to rewrite the scene, not an entire context to fit it into. They've been kidnapped and put into this crazy test, but we will never know why they were abducted or by whom. I'll leave that up to you, but my personal theory is that they were nabbed by some miserable people who just really hate love. They make it out at the end, and for the purposes of this scene, we'll just say that they escape and Odo catches the bad guys. Because this is fairly angsty and I would like to assume that there is a nice, fluffy, satisfying ending.
> 
> Ok, that's enough from me. Enjoy the scene! Let me know what you think, and if you read both versions, let me know which one you prefered! -- larosesombre

When Garak opened his eyes, it took a full minute for the world to stop spinning, and nearly another minute before he realised where he was. Either his reflexes were getting slow, or the drug his kidnappers had used on him was a potent one.

Once the dizziness dissipated, the first thing Garak noticed was that he was chained to a couch. The second thing he noticed was Julian across from him. The doctor was tied to a chair, his head falling forward over his chest. He didn't stir when Garak said his name, and there was nothing else Garak could do to wake him at present. The remaining options were to examine their surroundings, and to wait until Julian woke up.

Garak took stock of his specific predicament: the heavy seat and the thick metal chains. He was unable to do more than lift his head, while Julian was tied to a light wooden chair with rope. Evidently their captors considered Garak the greater threat. 

They were at the bottom of some kind of pit, the walls lined with tile. There were pipes sticking out of the walls at regular intervals, some of them dripping slowly. The patches of damp on the tiled floor suggested to Garak that the pit was designed to fill up with water. That would explain why his seat was chained to the floor. Garak wondered how many people had been drowned in here before. The certainty that this was the end of the road was almost calming compared to the fear and confusion he had felt earlier.

Julian began to stir in his chair. Garak watched him as he woke, waiting for him to lift his head, for their eyes to meet. The doctor's eyes were still clouded with the drug, but they cleared when he spotted Garak. Garak decided there was no point in sending Julian into a panic by explaining their situation. 

"My Dear, I trust you are undamaged?" Garak asked.

"As undamaged as I can expect to be after that ordeal." Julian croaked, "Where are we?"

"I'm not sure." Garak admitted. "But don't let it trouble you, I don't think that it's important."

"Not important?" Julian asked, looking around. It was only a matter of time before he too realised their predicament. "Surely that's the most important thing right now. If we're going to get out, we'll want to know where we are."

"I'm not sure that we are going to get out." Garak said softly. "Think, My Dear. Look around you and take in our surroundings. We're not going anywhere."

"That's very pessimistic of you, Garak." Julian said. Garak could almost see his thought process as he scanned the room, taking note of everything. The pipes, the chains, Garak's chair: heavy and shackled to the floor. Each caused a change in Julian's expression, moving it from confusion to fear before settling as one of determination and resolve. "I don't see that it's so final. There has to be a way out."

Somewhere above them, an intercom system crackled to life. Old technology, in keeping with the state of the decrepit building. "Good evening, Gentlemen. No doubt by now you've realised that your situation is dire."

"Who are you?" Julian called out. "Starfleet isn't going to let you get away with this!"

"Take note, you're in a pit that will shortly begin to fill with water."

"I don't think they can hear you, Julian." Garak remarked. 

"I've arranged this trap around the theme of love. Doctor, there are many people who do not believe it is possible for a Human to love a Cardassian. Now's your chance to prove them wrong. Your seat is free to float, while his is chained to the floor."

While the voice was speaking, the slow drip that had been audible since Garak woke up began to grow stronger. There it was, faster and faster until the sound of the water became a constant stream. The pool was filling up. 

"Attached to that float beside you is a small ion drive unit. On the side of the pit, a hammer. By the door, is a screwdriver. Near the hammer, you'll find a large rock. If you're clever enough, you can escape this trap. Or, you can stay faithfully with the man you love. It's your choice, Doctor. Let's just hope that whatever stuff you're made of _floats_!" The voice broke off into laughter, and then silence. Garak hadn't taken his eyes off of Julian, a sudden relief flowing through him as he realised that there was a way for one of them to make it out alive.

"It's laughable, My Dear." Garak said lightly, trying to calm Julian who was struggling against his ropes now. "Something out of one of your ridiculous spy novels." The water was to their ankles now. 

"It's genius!" Julian had loosened his bonds just enough to twist in his seat. The float with the ion drive attached was bobbing, just out of reach. As the water continued to rise, it grew nearer. Julian would soon be able to pick it up. "It has every element of a trap in a classic spy novel. The slowly filling pool, a horrible choice, ridiculous clues. Everything is in place."

"Then you can escape?" Garak asked. 

"Of course, it's only a matter of knowing how to use the objects at our disposal!" Julian's chair was beginning to lift a little. The water was to Garak's waist, but his chair wasn't moving. The float was in Julian's range now, and Julian grabbed it, using it to haul the ion drive off the bottom. It was a small unit, designed for use in subspace probes. Lifting it out of the water so that the ion charge wouldn't electrify the pool, Julian fiddled with the mechanism behind his back and managed to create a small pulse. After a few stops and starts, he was able to propel himself over to the side of the pit. 

The water was over Garak's waist now. He'd never expected a death by drowning, but it seemed that he had little say in the matter. At least Julian was going to escape. If he was actually able to leave after surviving the trap. There was a possibility that their captor would never let him go free. But Garak couldn't do anything about that, so he decided to ignore the possibility.

Julian was at the edge of the pit now, the hammer nearly in reach. Garak couldn't turn himself to see what was happening, but from what he could tell, some sort of acrobatics had allowed Julian to hammer a piece of tile out of the side of the pool. After a moment of sawing at his bonds with the sharp piece of ceramic, Julian was free of his chair. 

And instead of climbing to safety, he splashed back over to Garak. "Let's get you out of here."

"Julian, I'm chained to the ground. I'm not going anywhere." The water was halfway up Garak's chest now. He had another minute at most before it was over his head. Julian wouldn't be able to get him free with a hammer, a screwdriver, and whatever else the voice had left them with.

Garak's statement of fact didn't stop Julian from trying to break the chainlinks. The hammer wasn't doing enough, it was too small to crack the thick links of metal. After a couple tries, Julian dropped the hammer and made his way back to the edge of the pool. "The screwdriver is for taking the hinges off of the main doors." he called back to Garak. "But I can't imagine what the rock is for."

"Just get started on the door. If you leave now you might be able to make quite a bit of distance before our captors return-"

"There's a note on the rock." Julian said, cutting him off. " _'For weighing you and your sweetheart down together for all eternity.'"_ He read. 

"Well. That's not an option." Garak snorted. "Hurry up and get the door open."

The water was slowly creeping up his neck now. Garak tilted his head back, keeping his chin clear of the water. He could see Julian, still holding the rock, walk back towards the edge of the pit. There was a splash.

The idiot was going to stay. He was going to weigh himself down with the rock and die there next to Garak. Stupid Starfleet and it's stupid loyalty. Stupid Julian. Stupid Garak for not realising that something like this could happen. 

Julian was standing in the water next to him now, cradling the rock to his chest. "You're not staying." Garak snapped at him. "Your Starfleet romanticism is clouding your judgement. There's no sense in taking loyalty so far that you let two lives be lost instead of one--"

"I'm not letting you drown." Julian stubbornly countered. He raised the rock over his head, and Garak suddenly realised what he meant. 

"Clever, Doctor." Garak shut his eyes. Julian was going to put him out of his misery now. It was what made sense. Julian was making a rational decision, Garak should be proud. But instead of pride, all he felt was fear. 

The rock fell with a thud. The chains holding Garak to the chair snapped under the rock's weight, and Garak slid into the frigid water. And then Julian's arms found him, wrapping around him, holding him up, pulling him to the surface. "Starfleet romanticism, Garak?"

Garak leaned into Julian's warmth, letting him help him out of the pool and onto dry land. "Nevermind, My Dear. Let's just get out of here."


	2. Julian as Daphne

When Julian opened his eyes, the first thing he noticed was that he was chained to a chair in the bottom of a pit. The second thing he noticed was Garak, across from him. Garak was watching him attentively. He relaxed when Julian's eyes opened.

"My Dear, I trust you are undamaged?" Garak asked.

"As undamaged as I can expect to be after that ordeal," Julian croaked. "Where are we?"

"I'm not sure." Garak admitted. "But don't let it trouble you, I don't think that it's important."

"Not important?" Julian asked, looking around. "Surely that's the most important thing right now. If we're going to get out, we'll want to know where we are."

Julian took stock of his specific predicament. The heavy seat, the thick metal chains. He was unable to do more than lift his head, while Garak was tied to a light wooden chair with rope. 

They were at the bottom of some kind of pit, the walls lined with tile. There were pipes sticking out of the walls at regular intervals, some of them dripping slowly. The patches of damp on the tiled floor suggested to Julian that the pit was designed to fill up with water. 

"I'm not sure that we are going to get out." Garak said softly. "Think, My Dear. Look around you and take in our surroundings. _We're_ not going anywhere."

"That's very pessimistic of you, Garak." Julian said. It was all beginning to make some sort of horrible sense. Garak's chair, light and able to float. Julian's, stuck to the ground."I don't see that it's so final. There has to be a way out."

Somewhere above them, an intercom system crackled to life. Old technology, in keeping with the state of the decrepit building. "Good evening, Gentlemen. No doubt by now you've realised that your situation is dire."

"Who are you?" Julian yelled. "Starfleet isn't going to let you get away with this!" Surely someone from the station would be coming for them soon. They had to. 

"Take note, you're in a pit that will shortly begin to fill with water."

"I don't think they can hear you, Julian." Garak remarked.

"I've arranged this trap around the theme of love. Garak, there are many people who do not believe it is possible for a Cardassian to love a Human. Now's your chance to prove them wrong. Your seat is free to float, while his is chained to the floor."

While the voice was speaking, the slow drip that had been audible since Julian woke up began to grow stronger. There it was, faster and faster until the sound of the water became a constant stream. The pool was filling up. 

"Attached to that float beside you, is a small ion drive unit. On the side of the pit, a hammer. By the door, is a screwdriver. Near the hammer, you'll find a large rock. If you're clever enough, you can escape this trap. Or, you can stay faithfully with the man you love. It's your choice, Garak. Let's just hope that whatever stuff you're made of _floats_!" The voice broke off into laughter, and then silence. 

"It's laughable, My Dear." Garak said lightly, trying to calm Julian who was struggling against his chains now, the metal biting into his flesh. "Something out of one of your ridiculous spy novels." The water was to their ankles now. 

"It's genius, actually. It has every element of a trap in a classic spy novel. The slowly filling pool, a horrible choice, ridiculous clues. Everything is in place." Julian said it bitterly. He wasn't going to be able to break free of this chair. He was going to die there. But Garak could still escape, and that gave him hope. "You need to retrieve that ion drive and propel yourself to the edge of the pool."

"Unnecessary." Garak said. "I've got my sewing kit with me. There’s scissors in it. If you help me reach it, we can cut my bonds."

"Of course you do." Julian laughed. Garak scooted his chair over to Julian's, and after a minute of struggling against ropes and chains, they had Garak free. He paused for a moment to examine Julian's chains, and then splashed over to the side of the pool. 

"The hammer was undoubtedly to help me free myself," Garak called out. "And the screwdriver will take the hinges off the main doors."

"So you can leave, then?" Julian asked. "You're leaving me here?" 

He hoped the tremor wasn't audible in his voice. He _wanted_ Garak to leave him there. He didn't want him to die by his side when he could escape. But he also didn't want to have to die alone. 

"What could the rock be for?" Garak mused, ignoring Julian's question. He had climbed out of the water now and was standing over the rock. He picked it up. "There's a note attached: _'For weighing you and your sweetheart down together for all eternity.'_ " He read.

Sentimental nonsense. That was what Garak must be thinking. He'd see that it didn't make sense to lose two lives. Garak would be sensible and free himself. 

"I have an interesting choice to make." Garak said. “This is the part they always simplify in your spy novels, Doctor. Real spies make hard choices. A choice between love, and self preservation.”

"There is no choice." Julian responded, twisting as much as he could to catch a glimpse of Garak on the side of the pit. "You're going to take the hinges off the door and leave."

"Perhaps I should." Garak sighed. "You really are a liability, My Dear." There was a splash. Garak had gotten back in the water.

The water was lapping at the base of Julian's neck now. "Garak, what are you doing?" Surely Garak wouldn't consider this an option. He wouldn't weigh himself down with the rock to stay with Julian. It was romantic, but so unbelievably stupid. Yet there he was, standing over Julian, cradling the rock.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm not staying." Garak said. He raised the rock over his head. 

"Garak, no!" Julian gasped, twisting his head to the side, screwing his eyes shut against what he knew was coming. It made sense now. Garak had no intention of staying with him. He was going to end his suffering now, and then leave. It made sense. It was the right thing to do, the correct judgement, unclouded by sentiment.

The rock fell with a thud. The chains holding Julian to the chair snapped under the rock's weight, and Julian slid into the frigid water. And then Garak's arms found him, wrapping around him, holding him up, pulling him to the surface. "I never had any intention of leaving you here." He murmured, pressing Julian to him and starting for the side of the pool.

"Thank you." Julian smiled up at him as he got his shaking legs to start, propelling himself forward, helping Garak move them out of the water. "I should have known you had a plan."

"I always do." Garak soothed. "Now let's get out of here. I'd rather not be here when our captors return.”


End file.
